Building a culture of safety : the nature of communication between the Maquassi hills fire services and the community

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Abstract

Citizens in many provinces in South Africa have increasingly become more vocal about their unhappiness concerning service delivery in many departments of Government; their needs are not being met. Their violence and anger are usually aimed at emergency planners and government institutions, such as the police services, emergency medical services and fire services, therefore adding to various other challenges and difficulties these institution experience in carrying out their responsibilities (News Today, 2008). These institutions are also directly involved in the Disaster Risk Reduction process and play a key role in building a culture of safety and prevention within their communities by distributing knowledge and teaching skills (Twigg, 2004). Twigg (2004) argues that providing communities with information is the only way in which the scale, frequency, and complexity of disasters can be addressed. This should be
done by following a multi–disciplinary approach that includes participatory development communication as a tool. The term participatory development communication refers to communication between parties where information transfer is de–emphasised and the process of dialogue between participants is favoured (Jacobson & Kolluri, 1999). This allows for solutions to problems to be identified in a collective fashion (Twigg, 2004; Jacobson & Kolluri, 1999). In
light of the above the Maquassi Hills Fire Service’s relationship with the community has a major
impact on the contribution the fire services make to building a culture of safety and also to what
extent the community works towards building a culture of safety –– and thereby reducing
disaster risk within the community. This study, consequently, aims to investigate the current
relationship between the Maquassi Hills Fire Services and the community they serve, as well as
the role of participatory development communication in this relationship. In order to do so this
study explore various guidelines and principles set out by the literature in terms of participatory
development communication and culture of safety to establish to what extent the Maquassi
Hills Fire Services adhere to these principles and guidelines in their day–to–day functioning. This
has been done by using a qualitative research design. Data collection methods appropriate to
the qualitative research design were used to collect the necessary data. These methods
included focus group discussions with members of the communities in the Maquassi Hills area
and semi–structured interviews with the staff and management of the Maquassi Hills Fire
Services. Guidelines and principles established in theory were used to describe and evaluate the
current situation between the Maquassi Hills Fire Services and the surrounding communities to
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whom they provide the service of fire fighting. The two main areas of theory addressed were
that of Participatory Development Communication and that of a culture of safety as it presents
in the Disaster Risk Reduction field. These were also the two main areas investigated in the
empirical phase of the study. From the research it was found that in terms of Participatory
Development Communication very little is being done by the fire services to establish dialogical
communication. Thus creating opportunities for communities to communicate with the fire
services by developing relevant communication channels is not being facilitated. However
communities are eager to establish such an interactive relationship with the fire services. The
data indicated that when the principles and guidelines for building a culture of safety are
considered there exist various positive aspects. If these aspects are utilised and facilitated in the
correct manner it may facilitate the process of building a culture of safety. It is therefore
recommended that the fire services should start interacting with the communities in the
Maquassi Hills area. Most of the issues experienced in the relationship between the fire services
and the communities can to some extent be ascribed to the fact that the fire services do not
reach out to the communities they serve. Interactions with the community should be based on
the principles of participatory development communication which will ensure that dialogue is
established and information is exchanged. Also very important in the Maquassi Hills area is
supplying the communities with relevant, regular, correct and coherent fire safety information
and skills. People in these communities need the necessary fire safety information to ensure
their safety in terms of fire. By allowing people in these communities to participate in planning
and implementing initiatives aimed at informing people, awareness campaigns and information
sessions will be suited to the specific areas. This will mean that communities receive
information relevant to their situation and circumstances and ultimately initiatives will be more
effective, allowing the opportunity for a good culture of safety with regard to fire to be built.